Bacteriology:

Detection of antibodies whilst conducting serological examinations can determine infections within a flock as well as the effectiveness of the applied vaccination programs. Depending on the type of agent and the concern in question, various serological tests will be used. Methods such as Rapid plate agglutination tests (RPA), the Agar-gel precipitation test (AGP) and the Enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) allow the detection of antibodies against a specific type of pathogen. Haemagglutination inhibition test (HI) and Virus neutralization test (VNT) permit to furthermore distinguish antibodies from different serotypes or subtypes of a pathogen, e.g. Infectious bronchitis (IB), or avian influenza (AI). The application of immunofluorescence helps to clarify more specific questions.

Water Testing – Full bacteriological profile and Total Viable Counts (TVC’s)